Well that was some gig to do myself for the first time.
Punk/Death metal Bands night with a line up of 8 different bands all with their own backlines.....in other words-A NIGHTMARE!
I used a Nexo PS15 system and was more than impressed with its performance cosidering I was using only 1 LS1200.
My usual gig is a 3 piece covers band with keys,guitars,vocals and backing tracks.
This was an invaluable experience for me as a virgin soundman but I definately learned a few things tonight:

1.Even though you can achieve more headroom on vocals sometimes you don't want to.
2.Tell(don't ask) the bands what they are using.
3."Sling" bands who don't turn up or are late for soundcheck.
4.DO NOT allow the bands to use their own soundmen.
5.You Don't always need to mic up electric guitars.
6.Try and have at least two other people to assist you with monitors,cables and unexpected happenings.
7.Don't use your backline as backup.
8.Use headphones to fine tune the mix.
9.Make sure you have a lighting fixture near the desk.
10.Take a packed lunch.
11.Have every concievable lead at hand for even the most unlikely eventuality.
12.Take a plentiful supply of Prozac!!!

But did you have fun? :-)

Dosn't it now seem that if the bands watched "this is Spinal Tap" (particularly the "goes up to eleven" scene) they wouldn't realise it was anything but a straight documentary?

To tell the truth not a lot!


Unnecessary quoting removed. PLEASE TRIM YOUR QUOTES!

In response
1. Headroom is just that. If its there it doesn't have to be used. Its like the 5th and 6th monitor mix when a duo take to the stage.
2. Bands like to use gear they are comfortable with, but at the same time, if you're running the show you only have a limited time you should as you say have some authority.
3. Sling bands who turn up late due to them being unorganised or lazy. A band that has arrived late after spending a number of hours extra on the road due to a breakdown or bad traffic or weather will need looking after.
4. I provide PA for a handul of bands on a regular basis along with the majority of work which is last minute one off (which pays well ). A couple of these have their own sound engineer. If I were to say they cannot use this engineer they would not play and I woudln't get paid and probably woudln't work with them again. I think its a case by case thing. If they have a soundman that knows what they are doing its often BETTER to use them. If its someone who knows about faders going up and down then its best not to.
5. This is true. It's unnecessary in a small venue to do this. However to look at it another way, if you are running monitors, a mic'd up electric guitar can be fed through the monitors. It might mean the guitarist can turn his amp down, somewhat lowering the backline level (always good)
6.Agreed, although the more you have, the more you have to pay.
7.Better still don't carry a backline with you unless its required and being paid for.
8.Vital to have a pair. Whilst we can mix without them its nice to able to hear what's really going off on a particular channel.
9. Racklights and desk lights are God-sends. I hate having to carry a maglite between my teeth.
10. Food is always good.
11. And more.
12. But look back at a recent thread about working hours. and your ability to work properly and safely after a number of hours. This is even more important for working at height. working with heavy loads, driving, etc.


I'm a little concerned that you didn't have fun. At the end of the day, it is a job, but its a job we choose to do. It often pays less, is longer hours, poor hours, and there's alot of hard work to be done. We choose it over working in a shop, office or factory as we enjoy it. if you find you don't enjoy it then you have to question why you do it surely?
Or am I reading it wrong. Was it this particular gig you didn't enjoy?
Either way, welcome to the world of sound engineering We hope you enjoy your stay.


Rob

I think the OP didnt have fun 'cos he had too much on his plate to enjoy himself. Sure, it a buzz when you're in there making the improbable happen, but to have fun there needs to be an element of relaxation, and more people who know what they are doing and being useful as opposed to being in the way is one of the keys to that. And being very sorted, which is where adequate personal lighting, a magic box full of unobtanium and the packed lunch all come in.

Given that list, I think Ron will have more fun next time

Please can we all have some for Christmas!

Brian

Dbuckley you got it!
I had just so much to do on my todd that I couldn't fully enjoy the experience as much I would have liked to.
It must also be said that I am primarily a musician and this was the very first time I had "flown solo" on sound.
Rob I really should point out that it was a youths bands night with kids anywhere from 8 - 20somethings.They were all local to the venue and the ones that were late were late due to messing around and being plonkers not because of any traffic holdups or the like.
They just couldn't be bothered to get their butts onto the stage for a soundcheck.
Regarding the bands using their own soundmen,I really don't have a problem with that if they were pros but these guys were dragging along fellow musos who had only ever used peavey or carlsbro crap and really didn't have a clue about basics of running sound.
Another factor in limiting my enjoyment of the experience was the type of music being played.
In my,limited experience it must be said Punk/Thrash does not require tremendously skilled mixing skills and I would have far preferred something musically challenging with a bit more dynamics.
Often all that was required was to ride the vocal faders for the loud bits.
Please forgive me if this question is somewhat dorky but one problem I had was the Bass drum clipping on the initial "slam",what kind of compressor/setting would someone recommend for offsetting this?
It didn't seem to be audibly distorting so I went with my ears and didn't worry about it,would there be any possibility of damaging the speakers or amps doing this?
Also I found that applying the bass roll off button on the desk had the effect of killing the fullness and dynamics of the bass drum so I left it off,is this ok?
Sorry for the boneheaded questions but as I said this stuff is all new to me.

I assume you saw the clipping on the channel meter as you say there was no audible distortion? It is common to run the kick drum channel hot with the meter just tickling the top, not likely to do any damage to the console. If it is consistently peaking you could turn the gain back or engage the pad switch if you have one.

You could insert a compressor into the bass drum channel to get a more solid sound. But keep a check on the input gain setting as you could be clipping the signal before it gets to the compressor. You can check this on the compressor input meter or by hitting its 'bypass' switch and checking the channel meter. A standard live sound compressor such as one you would use on the vocals should do the job. A gate can also be useful if your drum has a long ring after it is hit, sometimes a problem when it does not have a hole in its rear skin, or if hitting a nearby tom drum causes the bass drum to resonate.

How was the channel EQ set? Sound guys typically boost the highs and high mid frequencies to accentuate the 'snap' of the beater. This of course results in very dynamic high frequency levels that are likely to register hot on the meter.

It is typical to leave the channel bass roll off (HPF) button off for the kick drum so you get the full low end. Once again, check how the channel EQ was set. Boosting the LF control can cause problems rather than enhance the thump. Instead it is better to cut frequencies you don't want rather than boost those you do. I usually find myself cutting the low mids around 250Hz to remove some of the 'boom' while leaving the LF set flat. But that is just my take...

Hope that helps,
Carey

Carey D Yes there was clicking on the channel meter but only fleetingly on initial impact.
I actually had the trim set at 0 and this still happened but as I said it sounded absolutely fine.
Normally,with 2 LS1200's I would set the eq as flat as poss but with only the one LS1200 in quite a big hall I found I had to set tha LF at around 2pm to get a nice full thump and the MF around 1pm on the dial.I didn't feel I needed to boost the HF.

Hi Rinkydinkron.
What console were you using?
Regards,
Carey

16 channel Behringer which belonged to the venue,I normally use a spirit.

Sorry Carey.

Mac

Well... We all have to start with something. RinkyD did say that their was no audible distortion, and by the sound of it he managed to achieve a reasonable mix with the gear, although he was concerned about possible damage through the overload.
Sometimes the hammer may be a little small and bent, but the nail does go in!
Regards,
Carey

Robs Completely right, we don't work behind a desk, or in a factory or a supermarket, because we enjoy what we do. I'm sure you've noticed on blue room that we like on big Family, we might shout and be horrible to one another but we all love each other really I personally love gigging, because there is also the feeling of the rock community, I'm really going on about feelings tonight aren't I

The way I do it is to try to get there as early as I can, get everything rigged, then I'm ready for the kids to come on stage. I'm about to do a huge dance concert. Audience of 1000 for my high school, again 4 hours of kids, teared seating taller then the sound + lighting box at the back
I have to say though I am really looking forward to it, I'm making it seam like I don't enjoy it, I enjoy every single event I do, each one provides a different set of challenges.

Oh and one thing I learnt on my first gig is that £100 for a block of stainless steel (a leatherman) was the best bargain in the world, it makes life simpler in almost every situation.

Im sure you will enjoy gigs later on, the first one is always a drag, but no matter how much you hated this one, im sure you will love them later on.

Rich

the mixer desk equvilent of a bent hammer?

surely that should a wacky-mackie? dosn't work the same as every other hammer and sooner or later you'll be swearing at it!

Was talking to a prospective full time employer (steady income... YAY!) and we were talking about how surprising it was that a lot of people in this industry started out with it as a hobby, started doing something (like a uni course or trainee ship) and just said "screw this, I am going into theatre/r'n'r/music/whatever" - out of his 30 full time staff in that building, about 20 of them had totally different career paths before they started work there, 3 were admin staff, and the rest moved straight into it after school.



And you will find your next best investment to be the metal detector to find the crew members who keep trying to nick it (or to find it when it falls out of your pocket in the car, on the couch, whilst you are cooking a bbq, whatever... My pants way a tonne due to the leatherman, maglite and other tools that I keep in there all the time. I am a tad worried about anti-terror laws though... If they search me and find a leatherman, I may be in trouble.



As they say, you have to start somewhere. Some people start riding the faders, others start with the taping of lav's to peoples sweaty bodies, or unwrapping the condoms to put the belt packs in (or, if you are like me and love embarasing the 15 year old work experiance kid - handing him a $50 and sending him to buy a couple of boxes of unlubed condoms and a cup of coffee without telling him what they are used for, then telling him to place them in the glove compartment of the van and winking)

I'm glad I'm not the only one who finds that a Leatherman seems to always lose itself. one tip I find is to have a wooden box with a latch, put it in that whenever your not using it, in theories it should never get lost. However I always seem to have mine on, I almost sleep with it on, so its not losing it when its not on me, its losing it when I am using it I only ever lend it to the boss, anyone else can go and buy there own, unless there interested in replacing it when they lose it.

I also find myself carrying my kit ever ware with me, maglite, small belt pack tool kit, leatherman, phone. I now just go strait for it when I need, I have even gone for it when I don't have it on, I don't understand how I lived without it before.

Rich
P.S if your interested in a leatherman, try eBay first, Genuine price is about £50 on there, almost half what you would pay in the shops. This is for a leatherman wave BTW. the ultimate leatherman, unless you want the chargeTianium, which you could use the handle as a file, its so rough to hold.